Turquoise Town
by curiouzkatt
Summary: this is going to be a notsolong story about the Sanzoikko meeting a girlguygirlguy and entering a town that has only one pathway, and the only way to get back out, is to solve puzzles and mysteries... UPDATED! 050408.
1. prologue

**Turquoise Town**

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**curiouzkatt:** (blinks at monitor) okay! this is going to be a multi-crossover of ideas, so please bear the insanity. thank you. this is, a recording. this is going to be a multi-crossover of ideas, so please bear the insanity. thank you. this is, a recording. the number you dialed is not yet in service. thank you.

**disclaimer:** this writer will never own Saiyuki until she tries every means possible. bow. er. miaw.

Thoughts to think about: The only thing in life that we should take seriously, is not taking life seriously. -

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**Prologue**

"Mou Hakkai! Aren't we near a town yet?" Goku whined as they rode towards a big patch of forest. "I'm really, really, really, REALLY, very, very, very, VERY hungry!" Hakkai could only offer a smile.

Gojyo lightly hit the boy's head. "You're always, hungry, baka saru!" He grinned as he watched the Goku's "poor me" look quickly change to a scowling face. "What? I'm only telling the truth!"

"Yes, but right now, I'm really, really, really, REALLY, very, very, very, VERY hungry!"

Hakkai couldn't help but laugh as the two went on fighting, and as Sanzo seemed to prepare to fire his gun. This usually happens whenever they're near a town. "Maa, maa, minna-san… we're near a town…" And that line usually appears. "Uhm, this town is a very interesting one, especially this patch of forest we're about to enter." he paused, but no one seemed to be listening so he continued as Hakuryu entered into the forest. "They say that hundreds of dangerous demons live in here. Well, they're harmless enough…"

TZING! TZING!

Two demons lay dead on the forest floor and a deathly silence followed as more demons started to appear, rage vivid in their eyes. Hakkai laughed uneasily. "… unless they are provoked." Goku and Gojyo forgot their bickering and yelled into Hakkai's ear.

"Enough with the tour! Step on it!"

"Roger!" Hakkai said with a smile and made Hakuryu go as fast as he could, and before long, they tore out into the open, and onto a long hanging bridge that was only meant for people to cross. But they had no other option. Somewhere near the other end, Hakkai spotted a girl who seemed mad at them. She was yelling something, but it was drowned by the snapping sound of the bridge's ropes. Time seemed to become still as they fell, as Hakuryu turned back into his dragon form and as the girl yelled the only thing that could be heard in the stillness.

"Damn I hate my life!"

SPLASH!

The water was quite deep and the four of them had to swim for shore. Gojyo was lagging behind for something had caught his hair. It was a half-drowned boy, gasping for air. He poked the boy, seeing if he was fully conscious so that he can get off him. He wouldn't have minded if it was a girl, but this is different. The boy glared at him.

"I'm not a poking bag…" he said, still slightly catching his breath.

"I'm glad to be of service to you, but I'm not comfortable with men clinging to me, get my drift?"

"Yeah, yeah… I get your point…" the boys said huffily, and decided to annoy the red head by talking like a girl with an accent, complete with a teasing look and arms locked around his neck. "But won't you be kind enough to carry me to shore? I – I'm afraid I can't swim…"

Hakkai watched as Gojyo threw the boy to shore, on top of Goku, and as an argument ensued among the three.

But he could've sworn he saw a girl…


	2. yanyan er, yanshao

**Turquoise Town**

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**curiouzkatt:** hmmmmmm... glad it caught your interest Writer-pretender 11. this story was just on a whim, so i'm not sure if i'll be able to finish it. if my depressed mood persists, this story will continue.

disclaimer: do i look like i can own Saiyuki?

* * *

**Chapter One: Yanyan –er– Yanshao… augh, whatever.**

Fixing up her Chinese style traveling clothes and her small knapsack, Yanyan gave Turquoise Town a final glance before turning her back to it and faced the long hanging bridge. She skipped her way to the bridge; thankful she was finally out of the crazy town. They owed her an antidote, but she will first have to go back to her own town to get supplies. Stepping onto the first wooden plank, she remembered her curse. But of course, that curse wouldn't take effect unless she gets drenched with cold water. That would unlikely happen here, because Turquoise has the strongest bridge around. Walking confidently, she was nearly at the middle when she saw a green jeep speeding towards her. Even though she was in danger, she still yelled. "This bridge is for people only! Get off the bridge now!" but of course she wasn't heard and the bridge ropes snapped loose because of the weight of the four people crammed in the jeep.

As they fell, she noticed the jeep glow and disappear but her mind was shouting other matters in her mind. She was going to turn into a boy again, and it would be hard to acquire that hot water from that silly bathhouse again. She would be out of supplies, and she would have to succumb to the insanity they called living at Turquoise. She wouldn't be able to go home because her parents won't be able to comprehend the complexity of her situation. Plus, the bridge was broken. She was doomed to be stuck as a boy. That thought sent shivers through her, but right now, there was an even more pressing matter.

She couldn't swim.

"Damn I hate my life!"

SPLASH!

Frantically flailing her arms and legs, she dared open her eyes underwater and spotted something red, which she can probably hold on to. She grabbed it and was immediately brought to the surface. She was relieved to get air in her lungs again. It was after she calmed down a bit that she realized that she was holding onto a guy's hair. He poked her head repeatedly as if she was a hideous monster. She just glared up at him until she got her breath. "I'm not a poking bag." She was now made aware of her voice that she was a boy once more.

"I'm glad to be of service to you, but I'm not comfortable with men clinging to me, get my drift?"

Great. She thought. She hated men like him. "Yeah, yeah… I get your point…" she huffed then paused, grinning to herself. She locked her arms around the guy's neck. "But won't you be kind enough as to carry me to shore? I – I'm afraid I can't swim…" She saw the red head give an evil smile, and before she knew it, she was in the air, headed for shore, headed for one of the man's companions. She hit the boy, but was unhurt because the boy cushioned her fall. Thank goodness!

The boy quickly got up unhurt and started yelling at the red head. "What was that for, Gojyo? I wasn't doing anything to you!"

The one called Gojyo shrugged and gave a mocking look as he headed for shore. "I miscalculated, so what? It was an accident, Goku.. plain and simple."

"Liar!" Goku yelled, gritting his teeth, looking like an enraged monkey. Well, that was just Yanyan's opinion. She ignored Goku as he ran to tackle Gojyo and looked around for the green jeep, but it was nowhere in sight. As she looked, a white thing blocked her view and made a sound she still didn't know how to comprehend.

"Ikyuu!"

Realizing what it was made her give a yelp of surprise. She stumbled backwards and fell then pointed a shaking finger at the thing. "A – a dragon!" she stopped herself then looked at the thing much closer. "Oooh, it's much different than those in Blue cave…" As she examined the small thing, the driver of the green jeep approached her. She stopped her prodding and gave him her attention. Looking at him, she gave him the impression of a teacher.

"Anou, I'm sorry we got you into this mess…" he said, bowing an apology. This guy seemed too polite to be true. "You're not hurt, I hope?"

"Nope!" she exclaimed cheerfully, putting her arms behind her head. It would be hard for her long braided hair to dry, but she didn't mind. "I just wish you didn't have to destroy such a perfect bridge…"

"We had no choice, we were being chased…" he paused and pointed above, at the hundreds of demons who wanted them dead. "… by them." Yanyan could only stare.

"And we would've made it to the other side if you weren't blocking the way."

"So now it's MY fault?" Yanyan snapped, turning to the one who spoke, but was suddenly rendered speechless for she found herself staring into deep amethyst eyes. Her heart was suddenly beating faster but she didn't understand why. She only snapped back to reality when Gojyo's face appeared in front of her. She backed away, yelling something about cockroaches.

"I'm not a cockroach!" Gojyo snapped, and hit Yanyan on the head.

"Itai! That hurt, you, you…" she couldn't find the words, but Goku supplied them. "You horny water monster!"

WHACK! WHACK! WHACK!

"We're not going to get anywhere if you don't stop bickering!" Sanzo said, sporting his fan like he always does after a good whacking.

Yanyan stared starry eyed at Sanzo, forgetting everything else. She didn't even notice what she had muttered. "I think I'm in love…"

"Uh, did I hear you correctly?" Gojyo asked, knocking on Yanyan's head.

Yanyan blinked. "Huh?" then registered what she said. "Uhm, what I meant was… I like… his… fan!" she turning red. "You can't find one's like that in Turquoise, or anywhere else!" she feigned to look at the monk with pleading eyes. "Can you give it to me?"

"I won't have anything to whack you with if I do…"

"Oh… okay then."

"Anou," Yanyan turned to the black haired man with the monocle, who looked at her sheepishly before continuing. "Are you from Turquoise Town?"

Yanyan was uncertain how to answer the man's query. "Well, no… but I spend so much time in there that I could be considered a resident." she grinned. "I'm Yanshao by the way, but you can call me Yanyan."

"Yanyan, that's a cute name!" Goku exclaimed. "It sounds edible!"

WHACK!

_"Can't you think of anything else but food?"_

The man smiled at him, and introduced all of them. He was Cho Hakkai, and the red head was Sha Gojyo. The brown haired boy was Son Goku, and the monk, to her surprise, was the infamous Genjo Sanzo. She was going to rant, but remembered the town they were about to enter. "But if you're going west, this is not the place to go through."

Goku blinked at her. "Why not?"

"Haven't you heard of Turquoise before?" Yanshao asked exasperatedly, as if they were committing a crime by not knowing.

"Just rumours…" Hakkai said, laughing slightly. "I heard people there were like machines, programmed to do only specific things. But we figured we could just pass by and buy supplies and be on our way."

"I'm afraid that's impossible.." Yanyan said, shaking her head, but still decided to lead the group up to the entrance to Turquoise Town, while the demons on the other side still kept watch. "For some reason, Turquoise has only one pathway… and to get past it, the route should be _around_ it. But once you enter this town, you can't go back out."

"Why not?" Gojyo asked, throwing away his pack of wet Hi-Lites into the water below. "If you're worried about the demons, we can handle them…"

"The bridge is broken…" Yanyan pointed out. "There will be guards by the gateway. They will let people in, but not out. Do you still want to go in?"

"We have no other option…" Sanzo answered. "We are quite low on supplies, and to go back at this state would be futile."

Yanyan sighed. "Okay then…" she waved an arm towards the entrance. "After you…" The four walked in, with her bringing up the rear. She sighed. This was going to be a long stay.


	3. i told you so!

**Turquoise Town**

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**curiouzkatt:** it prowls the night, making the least sound as possible and stalks it's unsuspecting prey. It bids its time until it sees fit to strike. Then it pounces!

kitten: MIYAW!

curiouzkatt: aaaa! Let got of my foot Karen!

Karen: Miyaw!

curiouzkatt: gee, we're both felines and yet we don't understand each other… anyway, I'm just talking to my kitty… weeeee! Here's chapter two! )

karen: miyaw miyaw miyaw miyaw mimiyaw! Miyaw! (she does not own saiyuki! Miyaw!)

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**Chapter Two: I Told You So!**

The demons all cheered when the travelers went inside the town. They didn't have to take revenge for their companions anymore. Their Mage Prince Saiku will make sure that they come out crazy, or not come out at all.

"Oro?" Goku blinked as his eyes adjusted to the darkness inside the town. Odd, it was almost noon outside. How come it's night here? He glanced at the boy named Yanshao who suddenly slapped his forehead. "Doushitano, Yanyan-kun?"

"I forgot to tell you," he told them. "This town doesn't follow the world outside but instead follows the timeframe of the one who last entered this place."

"Huh?"

"And since I'm with you, it'll follow the time that I left this place."

Hakkai looked around, seeing the two guards right by the gateway, just like Yanshao said. "You mean, you left this place last night?" he asked, thinking it odd that they bumped into him if that was the case. The boy sighed.

"It's not that easy to explain," Yanshao said. "And it's very complicated if I explain it all right now. Monkeys would pass out trying to figure it out."

"Which means that will happen to Goku over here if you did," Gojyo stated, jabbing his thumb in Goku's direction who immediately flared up.

"I'm not a monkey!" Goku yelled, rolling up his sleeves and approaching to hit Gojyo who just held him away at arm's length. "Mou, hanase!" but Gojyo just laughed away. Sanzo was at the brink of getting pissed and reached for his fan, but it wasn't there. Yanshao was looking at him and he assumed that the boy knew more. He was going to reach for his gun, but it wasn't there either and this was really starting to piss him off big time. He hit the two with his fists then grabbed Yanshao by his collar.

"Speak up kid, or I'll kill you."

Yanshao tensed at this threat, then told the monk to calm down. "Since you guys are newbies around here, you are currently unequipped with items that you need here."

"Newbies?"

"Yeah, newbies," Yanshao looked at the Sanzo as if what he said was the most basic thing. "Whenever someone enters this town, whatever he had from the outside is nil around here. But everyone gets starting items like healing stuff and one thousand turq money."

Goku shook his head. "This is getting too complicated…" he turned back to the gateway. "Are you sure we can't go back out?" he headed for the gateway but was stopped by some sort of force. Then both guards spoke up.

"We're sorry, but the bridge is currently under repair."

Goku blinked then found himself facing back to his companions. "Huh? What just happened?" He looked at Yanyan for answers.

"It's what happens when a place is not passable, or not yet suited for you level." Yanshao explained. "Now, do you believe me? We can't go out until we get the right things done."

"And what might those things be?" asked Gojyo, frustrated because he couldn't find his cigars. "Something like a mini-mission or something?"

"Well, sort of…" Yanshao scratched his head. "We'd better start walking if we want to get anywhere." He waved his right hand, and a translucent scroll appeared in front of him, with several options. He pointed at his items list and picked out the word bike and a bike materialized in front of him. Everyone stared.

"How the hell did you do that?" Gojyo demanded, staring at the apparitions, then at the bike. "Are you sure you're human?" The boy only grinned at him.

"You'll get yours when you get the right items…"

"But we already have Hakuryu." Goku stated, poking the bike then looked at Hakkai. "Ne, Hakkai?" But the man with green eyes only gave a short laugh.

"Actually, Hakuryu's missing…"

"EH? How could that be?" Goku exclaimed, jumping from his place to Hakkai's side, giving the older man a look of disbelief. "Mou, if you're joking, this is not a funny one." He turned back to Yanyan, but it was Sanzo who spoke up this time.

"We need the proper level to get Hakuryu back," Sanzo said, turning to Yanshao. "Don't we?" the boy only grinned and got on his bike.

"Blue Cave is only across town," he explained as he started off on his bike at a slow pace. "We'll get the stuff you need along the way." The others had no other option but to follow their only lead.

As they walked on, Hakkai looked around, noting the two fields on both sides, and how everything seemed to follow a specific alignment, and how everything seemed to have an exact measure. There were also no crickets, or any night sounds for that matter. He looked up and found no stars. "This is quite strange…" he mumbled, looking at the trees. There wasn't even the slightest breeze among the leaves.

"At least we should be glad there's still air." Sanzo stated, noticing Hakkai, then turning back to the boy who strictly followed the pathway, and not straying towards the fields. "Someone's controlling this place."

"Hey!" Yanshao stopped on his bike and was waving to them. "I forgot to mention! Don't go to the fields in your present condition. You won't be able to protect yourself at the moment."

"What do you mean?" Gojyo asked, dragging a whining Goku.

"There are aggressive monsters in the fields, and like I said, you don't have anything right now, since you guys a newbies."

"Even the weapons that we summon are gone?"

"You need to get a level to access that…"

"Damn this is too crazy…"

Yanyan somehow pitied them with their confusion, but they'll get over it soon enough –or so she assumes. Since this is their first time here, they'll have to go through what she went through. And right now, to make it day, they'll have to rest somewhere, and there's no better place than Aunt Auntie's house. Reaching the place, she made her bike vanish by choosing it in her options then walked inside the small house, and moved to talk to Aunt Auntie who was behind the reception desk. She waved at the old lady who gave her the usual smile. "Hi Auntie!" she greeted, pointing at the option scroll floating between them, choosing rooms for them.

'Hello my dear," the old lady said, sounding pleased but her face was just that of a stoic face, and mannequin like gestures. "It's been a while since I saw you…"

"Well, I've been going around the town collecting stuff and doing people favors," Yanyan told her, finishing the transaction and closing the option scroll. She smiled at the stoic lady. "Then I stepped out of the town for a short while."

"I envy you…" came the reply, as a dialogue box appeared and it said: _Enjoy your stay at my place._ And with that, they were all suddenly in a room with five beds.

Goku stared at the bed. "But I'm not sleepy!" he said, but his stomach already gave an answer in advance by grumbling. "I'm hungry!" He sat down on the bed, passing through the option scroll that appeared. "Oro?" He looked at it then read what it said.

"Rest. Yes. No." He turned to Yanshao who was watching him from the ed across his. "Ne, Yanyan-kun, what would happen if I chose no?"

Yanyan sat up. "Then you'll stay here."

"Where would I go if I chose yes?"

"Then…" Yanyan began, but the boy already pointed at the yes option. There was darkness for a while, then Goku was standing up when the darkness vanished. He blinked wonderingly at what happened. "… you "rest" and it's daytime again. Your weariness is gone, and the hunger you felt is somehow satisfied. It goes for everyone since we're automatically in one party."

Goku blinked again. "That felt weird…"

"You'll get used to it after a while."

"But I don't want to get used to it!" Goku complained. "I want to eat! I want to satisfy my hunger by eating delicious Chinese food!" his stomach rumbled again. "And I just made myself hungry again… mou…"

Yanshao went to the boy and patted his head. "Don't worry, we'll get out of here soon…" he assured him. "But for today, our first agenda is to the blacksmith so we can get your weapons."

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curiouzkatt: sowee if the chapter was a bit long, but i hope you guys liked it! dunno when the next chapter will be up though...

saph-am? what the heck happened to your other account? ya, i made her fall in love, but then again maybe not... /gg i'll think it over...


	4. get me outta here!

**Turquoise Town**

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**curiouzkatt:** Halu! Halu! Sorry I took so long, I'm catching up with old friends during the sem break, so there. Anyway, to the reviewers:

**ilovesaiyukithemost** – sure I'll review your fic! I apologize for the delay. I just type when ideas start to flow, and it's kinda hard when you have an extra hyper kitty around pouncing at everything. /swt anyway, I hope you enjoy this one too!

**saph-am **– lil sis! So genki as ever. The bicyle was a dead giveaway wasn't it? (smiley) thanks for the idea about the limited players at a time. (smiley!) Well, I really haven't thought of the levels, but I think I'm putting the max on 99, and I haven't thought of Yanyan's level yet… I'll give it more thought. Nyehehehe… the idea? I was just drinking milk, eating bread with guava butter, depressed, then /ic /! The idea was formed. This is more than the gameboy format… /gg Like I said, if depression persists because of you-know-what-and-who, I'll finish this fic this sem break. READ ON!

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**Chapter Three:** Get Me Outta Here!

"Wait, you mean we have to _buy _our own weapons?" Gojyo asked incredulously as they walked through the quiet streets of Turquoise. There were people about, but none of them spoke. Actually, everyone looked like statues or mannequins. Sanzo and Hakkai seemed to be figuring something out, but they weren't telling yet.

"You already have your summon weapons with you, but you just don't have the level for them yet," Yanshao said, cycling alongside the walking foursome. "We just have to make do with weapons you can handle as newbies."

"Like what?" he wasn't liking the sound of this at all. He watched as the boy mulled the thought over. "Well?"

"I started with a dagger," Yanshao began while avoiding a hole in the road. "But you have the option of using a club, your fists, or a tamed and trained animal that you have captured. But you need a level to get a… pet…"

"Mou, this is too complicated…" Goku whined as his stomach grumbled for the umpteenth time that day. "Harahetta…"

Yanshao was starting to feel sorry for the boy, but she didn't know what to do either. The staple things they sold here were usually candy, or protein bars for pets. There were potions, but those were for pets, too. She sighed then looked up for Blacksmith Joe's store. Seeing it, she made her bike disappear again then waved to the others. "We're here!"

Upon entering the shop, the usual option scroll appeared and Yanshao took charge of the transaction in front of the stoic mannequin Joe. He really didn't talk much. She scanned the available items, and only found few options for the foursome. "It seems they only have daggers, clubs, bows and arrows… and Sanzo's paper fan."

The four guys sweatdropped. "That doesn't leave us with much."

Yanshao shrugged. "It's the basic. Deal with it for now." She turned back to the option scroll. She chose the best basic bow and arrows for Hakkai, a club for Goku, daggers for Gojyo and a dagger and the paperfan for Sanzo. She had half the mind to keep it, but she knew it wouldn't do her any good. Well, she'd have a collector's dream item, but she wouldn't see Sanzo in action without it. She dealt it to them one by one, but Sanzo returned the dagger, saying he didn't need it. But he kept the fan in his sleeve.

It got Yanyan's curiosity. "Where'd you keep it?" she asked, peering under Sanzo's sleeve, but it wasn't there. "How'd you do that?"

This pissed off Sanzo and she was awarded with a bump on the head with the paper fan. "Don't touch me."

Yanyan touched her head, then mumbled how stingy he was.

"That's a special paper fan you know." Said a voice that was unfamiliar to all of them. They turned to the stoic Blacksmith Joe who was forever leaning on his countertop.

"What do you mean by special?" Yanyan asked, looking at Joe intently, and curiously.

"Special, in a sense that it just came last night, along with some odd items," Joe explained. "Choose the option scroll for special items." Yanyan did as she was told, and they found all of Sanzo's items listed there. "It's odd, because they're specially built for one job class."

"Lemme guess, the Monk job class," Yanyan said, scanning the items and their prices. "These cost at least sixty thousand yenis!"

"That's because they're oddly special," Joe explained. Yanyan noted that he kept using the word "oddly". "They're all slotted and specially leveled."

_First, oddly, now special._ _Hmmm…._ Yanyan skimmed the items, showing the descriptions for each.

**- Spirit ascending gun (20,000 yenis)** – special gun for exterminating demons or those with demonic powers. Powerless against holy beings.  
Job class: Monk.  
Level: 30. Slotted.

**- Bullets (10,000 yenis)** – specifically for spirit ascending gun. These multiply indefinitely once used.  
Slotted. (_Huh? How can bullets be slotted?_)

**- Reading glasses (3,000 yenis)** – for those with poor eyesight.  
Job class: all.  
Level: none specified.

**- Newspaper (1,000 yenis)** – the news changes everyday.  
Job class: all.  
Level: none specified.

**- Map (900 yenis)** – for easier navigation for travelers.  
Job class: all.  
Level: none specified.

**- Lighter (900 yenis)** – for setting anything aflame or for illumination. Limited to small objects and paper objects.  
Job class: all.  
Level: none specified.

**- Cigarettes (20,000 yenis)** – comes in only two brands, Marlboros and Hi-Lites.  
Warning: not good for the health. Decreases HP.  
Job class: all.  
Level: none specified.

Yanyan shrugged and purchased all the items. It would only make her money 2M yenis flat anyway. Finishing the transactions, She dealt the items to Sanzo, except for the gun and bullets. "You might tend to use them when you can't, and it'll just add to your frustration," she explained, then dealt the Hi-Lites and another lighter to Gojyo.

"Ah, sweet, cigarettes!" Gojyo exclaimed. Immediately lighting one stick. He hardly noticed the almost transparent scroll in front of him.

_Hey! No smoking in my shop!_

The next thing they knew, they were dumped outside the shop.

_And stay out!_

Yanyan immediately got up and hit Gojyo on the head. "You idiot! He was going to tell us more about the items! Now we won't be able to go back in!"

"Itai!" Gojyo exclaimed. "What do you mean 'can't'? You just have to walk back in and ask!"

"Go ahead and try it," Yanyan said challengingly, waving a hand to the door. Gojyo stood up and tried opening the door, but a transparent scroll appeared in front of him.

_Idiots who don't know respect may not enter._

"Ch!"

Hakkai looked at the boy. "But it was only Gojyo who insulted the man. Can't anyone else enter?" Yanshao shook his head.

"We're in one party, so technically, we all insulted him…" Yanyan paused, as an idea came to mind. "Unless…" he immediately made his option scroll appear and looked for the 'leave party' option. Before he selected it, he looked at Hakkai. "Do you know how to work this option scroll?"

"Well, I'll try…" Hakkai said sheepishly. "What do I have to do?"

"Just imagine the option scroll and it will appear," Yanyan instructed him, but when he just blinked, Yanyan explained further. "Picture this appearing in front of you." He pointed at his option scroll. "Can you do that?" Hakkai hesitated for a bit then closed his eyes, then a similar option scroll appeared. Yanyan nodded approvingly. "Now, all you have to do when I come back from inside is to select 'invite' and my name will appear. I will approve it, and we'll be one party again."

Hakkai smiled. "I understand. Good luck, Yanshao-san."

Yanyan was taken aback for a moment. Hakkai was good looking, too. She gave herself a mental slap then selected the 'leave party' option and went back inside the shop. Another option scroll came out.

_Welcome to my shop!_

Yanyan waved it away and went in front of Joe.

"Hahahahaha…" Joe laughed heartily. "Witty as ever, Yanshao…"

"If I wasn't, I wouldn't have lasted here…" Yanyan answered, grinning at the man's stoic face.

"Sorry about a while ago, it was programmed," Joe said, his voice turned annoyed when the option scroll appeared and a mechanical voice suddenly activated.

_I have the best weapons in town! How may I help you?_

"Stupid things," Joe grunted.

Yanyan laughed. "So, what's with oddly special and specially odd?"

"Oddly special is you, specially odd are your new friends," Joe said, laughing a bit. "Oddly specially odd, is what's with this town." Yanyan mulled it over. She loved these puzzles. "That's all I can tell you."

"Yeah, but it's very helpful. Thanks, Joe!" Yanyan finally chose the cancel option and she was back outside, immediately invited back into the party in time to hear Goku in mid-whine. She blinked at Hakkai's speed. "That was quick."

Hakkai only smiled. "I'm still trying to figure this out, so…" he laughed sheepishly. "So, where do we go now?"

Yanyan brought out her bike once more and rode it. "We're off for Blue Cave. But along the way, we're going to level up." She paused. "But before that, we have to decide on the party set-up. Only three of us can fight at a time."

"Huh?" Goku blinked at her. "You mean even if I want to fight, I won't be able to?"

"Something like that."

"Mou, first food deprivation, then this," Goku slumped to the ground, sighing heavily.

"It's okay Goku…" Yanyan reassured the other youth. "You'll get your turn. But for now, since I'm the one with the highest level, I have to guide you guys when you fight. So as of the moment, there are two slots open fro those who want to level up first."

"Yosh!" Gojyo pretended to roll up sleeves. "Let's settle this with a good old round of paper-rocks-scissors!"

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next chapter: er, I still have no idea. (evil grin) niyahahahaha… keep reading guys n gals!


	5. you have to be kidding!

**Turquoise Town**

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**curiouzkatt:** sorry it does not live to your expectations thea7flower, but this is the first time I've written something like this, and this is the way I write. Thanks for the compliment about this being strange. (smiley) Yes, I know it's been a long time since I updated, but it's only now that I got so much free time on my hands. xD;

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**Chapter Four: You Have to be Kidding!**

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"Sorties?" Hakkai asked, tilting his head a bit to one side. They were in some office where there was a lone man behind a small desk, perpetually holding a pen over a piece of parchment. He had this smile frozen on his face, but Hakkai could feel that the statuesque man was observing them curiously behind those wire-rimmed glasses. Goku was slumped on the waiting area, claiming to not even have strength to complain. Sanzo and Gojyo were both outside, smoking. "It suddenly sounds as if we're in this game to be hired to do something for someone. Ahahaha."

"Yes, it is exactly that." Yanyan answered him, his hands moving with ease with choosing things on the floating option scroll. "We're going to gather herbs, bring letters to one person to the other, find things for people, read things, go through every nook and cranny of this place to find things as mundane as bringing back someone's lost pet rat."

"Bleah, people keep rats as pets? That's not cute…" Goku commented from the side, looking more and more like a deflated air balloon as he just sat there waiting for them. "I'd prefer a dog or a cat…"

"Well, you're not cute, but we have to keep you…" Goyo muttered as he entered, a light waft of the smell of cigarettes following him inside the office. Goku was instantly in front of him as they began wrestling each other right then and there. And as they were at it, the man behind the table chuckled quietly, but enough for Yanyan and Hakkai to hear.

"Reminds me so much of your first few days here, neh, Yan-chan…"

"'_chan'?"_ Hakkai wondered, looking at the boy. The honorific he used was supposedly for a girl, but Hakkai assumed that it was their term of endearment to him, even if he seemed to be around his late teens. If Yanshao had been hiding his true identity, they would have spotted it already. But as he spoke, he seemed unfazed by the honorific.

"Ahahaha, you think so, Professor? Ahahaha! I do think I was less rowdy…"

"Nonsense…" the professor answered, his face pasted on a permanent smile behind those wire rimmed glasses. "…you were much worse."

"Thanks a lot…" Yanyan muttered in mock annoyance, making the option scroll disappear. Hakkai noted that they must have talked to each other a great deal to have such a close connection with them. "Jaa, we're off to do basic sorties then."

"Okay, be careful out there."

"Yes dad."

"Mattaku, I'm not that old…"

"Hai, hai!"

x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x

As they walked on, Sanzo was up front while Goku and Gojyo brought up the rear, sporting equally huge bumps on their heads, looking away from each other. All the while Yanyan was smiling to herself as she looked over the list, reminiscing on the times she handled these sorties alone. Maybe it would be more fun now that she was with other people. She could feel that eyes were still on her and found herself staring into emerald green eyes. "What is it, Hakkai-san?" she asked, slightly amazed at how much he could keep smiling like that. "Is there something on your mind?"

The brunette gently shook his head. "Iie… I was simply amazed at how you seem to be able to connect with everyone in this town, as if you've known them for a very long time." Yanyan couldn't help but take note on how observant this man was. Despite those smiles, and that seemingly genteel demeanor, he wasn't someone to be taken lightly – apparently, she thought she could.

"Well, it's no big deal…" she laughed a bit before singling out one sortie entitled "Tall Grasses". "With their lives like this, they can't even see their own shadows anymore. What more of their family members just in the same house? The Joe's just stuck there in his shop, while his wife's always stuck in front of the stove, always burning the meal when I talk to her. Their daughter's no better, always pacing back and forth outside their house, holding a rubber ball but never able to play it. Their bodies don't seem to get tired, but the soul must be pretty tortured by now… Talking to them as often as I can is the least I can do…"

"I see…" Hakkai nodded contemplatively, and seemed to have gotten a thought. "You're actually a nice kid!" he quipped, making Yanyan fall over.

"What the hell do you mean by that?!" she demanded, staring at Hakkai with an eyebrow teaching. "You mean I look like some mischief-maker?!"

"W-well, it's nothing like that…" Hakkai started, holding his hands up, signaling that she should calm down. But the boy continued to glare at him a if he was holding some piece of food that was for him. It reminded him of something. "Ah! Inu…"

Everyone stared.

…

"Eh!?"

"Oi, oi Hakkai! Don't just go saying random things like that…" Gojyo said, slapping his own forehead. Although Hakkai really had those tendencies, especially when he wanted to change the topic at hand.

"Oh, it's not random… Yanshao's face a while ago reminded me of that." Hakkai said matter-of-factly. Everyone in turn looked at Yanshao and the boy blinked at them in return, his face a big sign saying "What are you looking at?". There was a pause before the three, Goku, Hakkai and Gojyo started to laugh uncontrollably.

"First a saru, now a dog! What's next, an iguana?" Gojyo managed to say, slapping his thigh in amusement. "This is too much…!" Goku was already trying to hit him, but he was just holding him away at arm's length.

"I am not a pet!!" Yanshao burst, jumping and kicking Gojyo from behind, toppling the man over face flat on the ground. Goku was left standing in wonder at the speed of events. When he saw Yanyan, he immediately back away. Gojyo quickly turned, only to see that the boy was burning mad.

He grinned. "I'm used to fighting monkeys, how hard would it be to fight a dog?" Pretending to roll up sleeves, he locked Yanyan's head under his arm and gave him a good noogie. The poor boy couldn't get away, no matter how much he tried to squirm. Hakkai laughed uneasily, glancing at Sanzo's direction. It wouldn't be long now.

"STOP ACTING LIKE ANIMALS OUT OF THE ZOO OR I'LL REALLY SHOW YOU HOW YOU SHOULD BE TREATED!!"

**WHACK! WHACK!**

x.x.x..x.x.x.x.x.x.x.x

Yanshao was still teary-eyed as they walked on towards the fields of tall grasses near the outskirts of town. She had no idea that paperfans hurt so much. Even her mother couldn't do the same amount of damage with the clothesline pole. Somehow, she had this pang of wanting to see her mother again, even if they never get along.

"What exactly do we have to do with these tall grasses?"

Gojyo's question brought her out of her clouds, and she found them looking at the grasses curiously, tugging here and there. The grasses reached up to Gojyo's height"Ah, look at your option scrolls to check out the sortie details." She told them, bringing out her own option scroll. "Gather 30 tall grasses from the plains to return to Professor Wu for his botanical studies." She read aloud, and as she did so, Goku was already poking around.

"Do we pull it off? Doesn't look to difficult." He muttered, preparing himself to uproot the plant. But just when he was about to tug, the plant in front of him disappeared, making him lose his balance and fall backwards and land on his behind. "Oro, what just happened?" he asked, looking around. "Did it run away?"

"Baka, we're talking about a plant…" Yanshao teased, sticking her tongue out at the surprised boy. She went in front of a plant and stretched out her hands to it. "You just do it like so, and think that you've picked it up." And as she said this, the plant vanished, and a small scroll appeared that there have been 2 tall grasses that have been collected. "See?"

Goku, Gojyo and Hakkai all stared in amazement while Sanzo just watched, his expression saying that all of this was too mundane for him to do. But as the others proceeded to collect, he did as well, lazily holding out a hand with no particular hurry. The other three were practically competing with each other, and ran around in different directions so as to not bump into each other while gathering. As Yanshao picked up two more, she recalled the area as the home of one of the moderately high level monsters. She could defeat it, but not any one of them in their current state. Well, if anyone encountered it, she would be in the front line along with Gojyo and Sanzo. They should be able to defeat it. But to avoid unnecessary trouble, they shouldn't face it. She looked around to take into account for everyone. Goku was straying too far away, and she raised her voice to call out to him.

"Oi! Goku! Don't go too far!" but even before the words finished coming out of her mouth, a blue water-like monster came out and pounced on Goku. "Shimatta!"

Everything went dark for a split second, and Sanzo instinctively reached for his gun, only to come up with his paperfan. "Ch!" he found himself relocated from where he had been standing into some clearing, standing along with Gojyo and Yanshao, facing a water like monster cat who was at least as high as one floor of a house. Goku and Hakkai was somewhere behind them, the saru being noisy as usual. He couldn't sense any killing intent with the being so he had to resort to what he saw to measure its strength. The monster didn't look strong… he could probably take it by himself in his normal state, because right now, he was going to fight it with his paperfan.

"I'm sorry there's no time to go into detail of what to do into battle." He heard the boy say, his option scroll already out. "But basically, you have three options, attack, defend, and run away."

"What the hell, not a very wide range of options." Gojyo muttered, bringing out his daggers by choosing it in his option scroll. "What are these, potions?" Gojyo was pointing at the part of the attack options.

"It's part of the newbie package." Yanshao explained, bringing out some scrolls as her weapons of choice. "You can use it during your turn, either to heal yourself, or to heal a comrade. And even if there is a limit on when you can attack, you are flexible in what you can do during your turn. Avoiding fast and the amount of damage you can deal." As Sanzo listened, he began to glow, like some stupid flickering lamplight. "Sanzo, you're the first one to move. And remember to be quick because the monster _will_ retaliate.

"Ch!" it was Sanzo's only reply as he ran towards the monster, whacking the thing with everything he had.

_Critical hit!_

_Monster's HP: 1200/1500_

The monster retaliated, but Sanzo dodged it with ease.

"What was that, Sanzo?? Such a weak hit coming from you!" Gojyo taunted as Sanzo's turn ended and transferred to him. He grinned as he sported his daggers and threw them at the monster, four consecutive shots.

_Hit!_

_Hit!_

_Miss!_

_Hit!_

_Monster's HP: 1185/1500_

"Nani!? That's not fair! Sanzo's fan dealt way bigger damage!" Gojyo complained while avoiding a hit from the monster. Goku and Hakai were clapping at the sidelines, clearly amazed as well.

"It might be because of the times he'd been hitting you guys with that thing." Hakkai surmised happily, getting retorts of "That's impossible!" from Goku, Gojyo and Yanshao. The glow shifted over to Yanshao and in turn the boy brought out one of his scrolls.

"Although another piece of paper will do greater damage!" the boy exclaimed, muttering something and flame came out all around the monster, making it scream in anger as it got hit all sides.

_Critical hit!  
Monster's HP: 685/1500_

"Suuuugoooooi!" Goku jumped up and down. "Neh, can I learn that too?" the boy excitedly across the field while Yanshaod dive out of the way of the monster's icicle attacks. "It's looks super cool! I can learn it, right?"

"Hmm, it needs a lot of concentration to be able to pull it off." Yanshao answered, picking his next weapon of choice as the glow moved back to Sanzo. Sanzo had already dealt his paperfan yet again while Yanshao was explaining to Goku. It would seem like it was the last round for the monster. Gojyo attacked as well, dealing more damage than the last time, leaving the monster with 300 HP. Goku said something about it being easy to concentrate, but Yanshao only laughed and prepared to attack with another fire scroll. "Five consecutive shots, flying embers!"

Five orange orbs floated around Yanshao and one by one it struck the monster, combusting as it came near. Each dealt a hundred points damage. As the fourth one was flying to finish the strike, the monster retaliated. Water crept from underneath Yanshao, slowly enveloping him from his feet up. "Not good! Move out of the way, Yanshao!" Hakkai yelled to him, Gojyo tried to grab him away, but he could not be moved while in the middle of the turn.

Yanshao looked helplessly at Gojyo as she became submerged into an orb of water. _This shouldn't be happening. This isn't possible._ She thought, feeling herself lose control over her attack, and the remaining embers combusted around her.

"Yanshao!"


End file.
